Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 13, 2026
08:40
Synthesis of Metal Nanoparticles Supported on Carbon Nanotube with Doped Co and N Atoms and its Catalytic Applications in Hydrogen Production
Published on: December 6, 2021
The Remarkable Rise in High-Entropy Catalysts: A New Paradigm for Sustainable Hydrogen Production.
Abid Ahmad1,2, Irshad Bhat3, Qian Liu1
1Research Center for Eco-Environmental Engineering, School of Environment and Civil Engineering, Dongguan University of Technology, Dongguan 523808, China.
Nanomaterials (Basel, Switzerland)
|May 12, 2026
Summary
High-entropy catalysts (HECs) accelerate green hydrogen production by improving water splitting efficiency. This review addresses knowledge gaps in HEC design and stability for practical applications.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Catalysis
- Green Chemistry
Background:
- The hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is crucial for green hydrogen, but water splitting kinetics are slow.
- High-entropy catalysts (HECs) offer tunable properties for improved activity, stability, and cost-effectiveness over traditional catalysts.
Purpose of the Study:
- To critically assess challenges in rational HEC design for HER.
- To provide a strategic roadmap for HEC development, bridging fundamental science and technological application.
Main Methods:
- Systematic review of HEC design, synthesis, and structure-activity relationships.
- Analysis of knowledge gaps in identifying active sites and predicting long-term stability.
- Diagnosis of seven grand challenges in the HEC science-to-technology pipeline.
Main Results:
- HECs show promise in overcoming limitations of conventional catalysts for HER.
- Significant knowledge gaps persist in understanding operando active sites and predicting stability.
- A strategic roadmap with proposed countermeasures for HEC development is presented.
Conclusions:
- Addressing identified challenges is key to advancing HEC rational design.
- This work provides a framework to guide future research towards practical and cost-effective HEC deployment for green hydrogen.
- Future efforts should focus on bridging fundamental understanding with applied engineering for HECs.
Related Concept Videos
02:13Reduction of Alkenes: Catalytic Hydrogenation
Alkenes undergo reduction by the addition of molecular hydrogen to give alkanes. Because the process generally occurs in the presence of a transition-metal catalyst, the reaction is called catalytic hydrogenation.
Metals like palladium, platinum, and nickel are commonly used in their solid forms — fine powder on an inert surface. As these catalysts remain insoluble in the reaction mixture, they are referred to as heterogeneous catalysts.
The hydrogenation process takes place on the surface of...
Metals like palladium, platinum, and nickel are commonly used in their solid forms — fine powder on an inert surface. As these catalysts remain insoluble in the reaction mixture, they are referred to as heterogeneous catalysts.
The hydrogenation process takes place on the surface of...
02:17Reduction of Alkenes: Asymmetric Catalytic Hydrogenation
Catalytic hydrogenation of alkenes is a transition-metal catalyzed reduction of the double bond using molecular hydrogen to give alkanes. The mode of hydrogen addition follows syn stereochemistry.
The metal catalyst used can be either heterogeneous or homogeneous. When hydrogenation of an alkene generates a chiral center, a pair of enantiomeric products is expected to form. However, an enantiomeric excess of one of the products can be facilitated using an enantioselective reaction or an...
The metal catalyst used can be either heterogeneous or homogeneous. When hydrogenation of an alkene generates a chiral center, a pair of enantiomeric products is expected to form. However, an enantiomeric excess of one of the products can be facilitated using an enantioselective reaction or an...
02:50Catalysis
The presence of a catalyst affects the rate of a chemical reaction. A catalyst is a substance that can increase the reaction rate without being consumed during the process. A basic comprehension of a catalysts’ role during chemical reactions can be understood from the concept of reaction mechanisms and energy diagrams.
01:27Catalysis
Catalysis influences the rate of chemical reactions by providing an alternative reaction pathway with lower activation energy. A catalyst speeds up a reaction, but it is not consumed during the process. The fundamental principle of catalysis is the ability of a catalyst to alter the reaction mechanism, often introducing a more efficient pathway than the uncatalyzed process.In a catalyzed reaction, the catalyst participates directly in the reaction mechanism. It interacts with reactants to form...
01:22Heterogeneous Catalysis
Heterogeneous catalysis involves a catalyst in a different phase from the reactants. It is a process where the catalyst and the reactants are in distinct phases, typically solid and gas or liquid.Most heterogeneous catalysts are metals, metal oxides, or acids. The list includes transition metals like iron (Fe), cobalt (Co), nickel (Ni), palladium (Pd), platinum (Pt), chromium (Cr), manganese (Mn), tungsten (W), silver (Ag), and copper (Cu). These metals possess partially vacant d orbitals that...
02:24Reduction of Alkynes to cis-Alkenes: Catalytic Hydrogenation
Introduction
Like alkenes, alkynes can be reduced to alkanes in the presence of transition metal catalysts such as Pt, Pd, or Ni. The reaction involves two sequential syn additions of hydrogen via a cis-alkene intermediate.
Like alkenes, alkynes can be reduced to alkanes in the presence of transition metal catalysts such as Pt, Pd, or Ni. The reaction involves two sequential syn additions of hydrogen via a cis-alkene intermediate.